Bella's Prelude
by BlueMoonsAndTooSoons
Summary: It's the beginning of Bella's life after her time in the Irish moon pool, and the nine year old has a wonderful time ahead of her, just as long as she is willing to prepare and be safe.
1. Bella's Beginning

**Thanks for visiting my story, but I hope you'll stay and read. As usual, I never claimed the rights to H2O: Just Add Water, I merely enjoy writing for it. Please Read and Review!**

**This is only a slightly edited version of my original** **chapter. **

She couldn't play with the other children. Not anymore.

Still, Bella watched them eagerly from the shore, keeping a safe distance from the foamy waves that threatened to crash over her toes and reveal her secrets. The other children had no cares as they plunged head long into the surf and the cloudy, but warm day. Their teeth chattered, but their pursuit of the water made them abandon their bodily discomfort for the rush of freedom in the water.

Bella knew that freedom well, and she prided herself in knowing it better than most people. A grin spread over her cheeks, revealing a black hole where a new tooth would soon be. Yes, she knew the freedom, and didn't have to waste her time here for fleeting moments of it like other boys and girls. She didn't envy them at all, even though she couldn't play with them right now. She might have been secluded from the world, but that was only because she was so special. Bella looked up at the sky and saw how fat the clouds were, and how dark they were becoming. She decided it would be best to go home before the rains came, and before any water touched her skin.

"Bella!" A boy's voice called. He was running from behind her, so Bella turned to see who it could have been.

It was Martin O'Hara, one of her only friends here in Dublin. He was soaking wet from his dives into the salty sea, so she backed up from him for safety's sake.

"Martin? Why did you follow me?" She asked, just as thunder started rolling down the hills and into the city streets.

"You didn't swim today, and you left early. I thought something might be wrong." He looked at her with all the concern a nine year old boy can have. "Are you feeling okay?"

"I feel fine. I just thought it was going to rain soon, so I thought I'd get home to mum." She smiled.

"Oh, is that all?" Martin was contented. "That's probably a good idea though. Mum hates it when I get caught in the rain. I should get going." He pushed his wet brown hair out of his face. "I'll see you at school tomorrow?"

"Yes. Good bye, Martin!"

"Bye, Bella…" He stood there for a second before enveloping her in a short hug and running. "See you at school!" He yelled behind him as he sprinted through the streets.

Bella just turned around and sprinted towards the ocean.

"6...5...4...3..." She counted in her head as she ran. If she could just get within crawling distance, she would be fine. Her little legs pounded the old cobblestones as she ran, and the impact made her ankles hurt. She had reached the end of her countdown, and she could only just see the water from behind a small hill of grass. No one was in sight; probably taking cover from the rain. So she made one final leap over the grassy dune, one moment before she changed.

She hit the ground with a thump and landed in the safety of the overhanging mounds of dirt. Thunder crashed again, and the dirt and rocks around her started showing the dark shadowing of droplets hitting the ground. Soon enough, it would be pouring, and the muiroighe under the hill would have to wriggle her way to the water for safety.


	2. The Relationship is Falling

**Hey! I had people request second chapter, so I wrote it. I don't have a beta, because my old beta refused to do H2O fics. (Yeah, I broke up with them. We clearly weren't soul mates.) So until I find a new one, they'll just appear as is. Thankfully, I know my grammar stuff, so it isn't bad. **

**Standard disclaimer applies. Thank you for reading!**

Bella was silent and small as she slunk through the door later that evening. She knew she had been gone an awfully long time; Longer than she was really allowed to be missing from her home in a strange city. She wasn't sure what time it was, or how much time had passed, only that she had been stuck in the ocean forever, just waiting for the rain to stop. She also wasn't sure what to do with her parents, who were sure to question her vehemently, demanding an explanation.

As she came through the kitchen door and into the living room, she saw her parents sitting on the long, brown corduroy couch. Her mother had clearly been crying, but was now that calm and cool vision of motherhood that had frightened Bella her whole life. Mrs. Hartly was tucked under her husband's arm, who seemed content to let his wife deal with the missing child.

"We called the constable." Was the first thing out of Bella's mother's mouth. "They wouldn't start a search until you had been gone for at least twenty-four hours. They said to call if you showed up or remained missing. Would you mind getting me the phone dear?"

Bella gulped. What kind of torture was this? Couldn't there just be a spanking and then off to bed with milk and crackers? Going over to the wall, she un-looped the long, curly cord from around and phone and brought it over to her mother, stretching the white line until it was nearly straight. Nodding her thanks, the woman dialed a number and put it up to her ear, lips pressed together, perfectly manicured nails resting on her chin. After a terrifyingly long wait, Mrs. Hartly smiled.

"Yes, Officer McCready? She's home now. You were right! …Yes sir. …Yes sir, you may withdraw the statement." Then she laughed. "Of course sir. Thank you very much for your time. Good night now."

Bella watched as her mother pressed button inside the phone to end the call. Handing it to her, she ordered her to hang up the phone.

"And don't forget to recoil the line!" She added helpfully.

Holding the phone just as her mother had to maintain the broken connection, she carefully put the phone away and coiled the rope. Bella couldn't decide if she should do it quickly or take her time, so her speed was sporadic. Nervous as she could be, she approached her parents again.

"You missed supper, darling." Mrs. Hartley stated, not moving her eyes from her daughters. "I thought you might have gone over to Martin's house and simply forgot to inform us. But his mother said you weren't there."

"I wasn't there." Bella had scrunched her lips together, and pushed them to the left side of her face.

"Dear, don't do that. It may set." Mrs. Hartley cooed, pressing her fingers against her daughter's left cheek, so her face would settle back into a normal expression. "Where were you then?"

"I was at the beach."

"We checked there. In fact, it was the first place we looked. We couldn't find you."

Bella didn't know they had gone there. Once the rain had started and the people were gone, Bella had crawled into the ocean to wait out the storm. It was safe for her there.

"Well, not the beach exactly. There was a rainstorm, so I ran into a house." Bella bit her lip, but tried to smile a little bit.

"Ah, who's house?"

"It was an empty house."

Mrs. Hartley sighed emphatically. "I see. An empty house on the beach." Mr. Hartley chuckled.

"Well, not a house. It was a shack." Bella added.

"Let me make sure I have this straight. You were at the beach when it started to rain, so you ran into a house that was really a shack to wait it out." Mrs. Hartley tapped her chin with her perfect nails. "Yes, I believe that's right what you told me, isn't it?"

"Yes momma." Bella muttered.

"That's a nice story dear, but allow me to enlighten you. There are no shacks on the beach here; to many crags and rocks. The beach doesn't even have any empty buildings around it because that is the water front district. Space there is limited and highly desirable, meaning empty buildings are a nonexistent. There was a rainstorm, but it was quite light, and based on the information Martin gave us, you were closer to home than the beach when he last left you. It would have been more than simple for you to simply run home. Would you like to tell us now what really happened?" Mrs. Hartley tilted her head to the side.

"I… can't." Bella sniffed.

"Darling, I think you'll find you can." Mrs. Hartley said sympathetically. "Did someone hurt you or embarrass you?"

"No…"

"Were you threatened or held against your will"

"Not really…"

"Did you decide to be disobedient and not come home when you were supposed too?"

"No momma!" Bella sobbed. "I didn't mean to be disobedient!"

"Shush, Belladarling." Bella's mother pulled her daughter close and sat her on her lap. "Shush. You know we love you, darling. We only want you to learn and grow."

"I didn't do it on purpose…" Bella said through her sobs. "I just couldn't get home."

"You know you scared your mother very much." Mr. Hartley put it, earning a "hush-up" from his wife.

"You're dinner is in the refrigerator, darling. Go on and eat and then go to bed. Take a bath in the morning." Kissing the top of her daughter's head, she let her off her lap. Bella padded gently into the kitchen, still sniffing her sobs and tears away. Opening the refrigerator door and pulling out the small plate covered in plastic wrap.

She was very glad her tears didn't trigger the same transformation other water did.


	3. Down it Came

It was Monday morning. Monday morning usually meant something to Bella, and it changed week to week. Sometimes she was excited about it, other times she dreaded it with her whole being. It could be the introduction to a week of friendship and excitement, or a completely droll and elongated six days of imprisonment. In the small, Irish boarding school, no child was considered unimportant, but this is only because the parents weren't unimportant either. Bella's parent's might have been the wealthiest to put their child in the school, which meant Bella received a lot of extra attention. It wasn't usually something that bothered her, but today she didn't want it.

Her Sunday at home hadn't been very nice. After coming home from school late on Saturday, her parents had used the next day to instill some very important lessons in her and it was only the worst punishment ever. Bella spent most of Sunday after Mass sitting on the couch while her eccentric parents acted out scenarios that might occur in her little life. She was only nine, but even Bella knew that some of the situation were far fetched. While her parents were respected and proud, their approach to parenting was unique and progressive, but mostly just scary.

Now, it was Monday. Putting on her school jumper and plain, green plaid skirt, Bella waited by the door for her mother to get the keys and drive her to the school, just outside of the city limits. True to form, her mother rounded the corner, pager in hand, staring at some papers in her smart leather binder, a coffee in her other hand. Mr. Hartley was also coming behind his wife, but he looked a bit more relaxed in his suit than Mrs. Hartley looked in her elegant pant suit.

"Pull your socks up, darling. They shouldn't be in a puddle at your ankles." Mrs. Hartley instructed without even looking up. Silently, Bella sat down on the entry way carpet and pulled her scratchy white socks up to her knees.

"Stand up! You don't want to wrinkle your skirt!" Came another command, then Mrs. Hartley swore. "Oh, pardon darling." She directed the apology at her daughter. "Jerry! Will you get those proposals off my desk? Mr. Curtis will want those at the meeting today."

"I'm right here, dear. I have the proposals in my case." Mr. Hartley snapped at the woman who had just yelled in his ear.

"Well give them here." Mrs. Hartley stuck out her binder and coffee in one, jerky movement. The coffee was now just over Bella's legs, and the movement caused the hot instant-drink to spill out of the mug and arch into the air and fall with a sickening splat onto her socks. The scalding liquid blazed through her socks and onto her skin, causing her to yelp.

"Oh dear…" Was all Mrs. Harley had to say as she looked down at her daughter.

Bella was up as soon as she could think to do it. Leaving her backpack by the door, she ran into her room and closed the door, but couldn't lock it in time. She fell over, a massive tail protruding from her hips.

She used the curse word her mother had used just moments before, but then felt bad about it.

"Darling? Darling, we have to go right now! It's just a little stain, nobody will notice!" Mrs. Hartley pounded the door. "If you don't come out here right now, I'm coming in and I'll drag you out."

"Hold on momma. I can change me socks really fast!" She pleaded, trying to dry herself off with a towel. The coffee wasn't on her tail now, and would only take a second before she would change back…

"I'm coming in!" Her mother screeched.

"I'm coming out!" Replied Bella, opening the door. She had a pair of sock in her hand, as the stained ones were on the floor. "Can I just put them on in the car?"

"Yes darling. Hurry out, now. You don't want mummy or daddy to be late to their meeting now." She hurried the girl out the door, and Bella got in the car without protest.

She always had hated her mother's instant coffee, but now she knew why.


	4. Lucinda Twisted Her Ankle

**I'm juggling three fanfictions at once. My updating speed is slow for that reason, so please forgive me for being an over acheiver. It's chronic and I can't help it. Please read and review! Thank you!**

In school, Bella found that she was consistently left out of everything. Everything that is, that involved water. It wasn't always like that of course, but now… It was dangerous just walking around the building anymore, and her days were filled with the skirting of disasters and avoiding a catastrophe. She didn't really have many friends, even though she was sweet to everyone. She just wouldn't go out and play with them, and it was natural for every child to feel some aversion to someone who wouldn't play.

But she had Martin, and he was more than enough for her sometimes. She had a couple girl friends who would come over and play Barbies sometimes, but it was Martin who lived close enough to see her everyday and it was Martin who was fiercely loyal to his friend even when she wouldn't go play in the rain puddles forming outside the window during math. Just as they were today.

"Come on, Bella!" Martin pulled his friends hand toward the door. They had ten minutes of recess, and every child planned to make the absolute most of it.

"I don't want to go." Bella protested, pulling her arm back. "I don't feel to well and I think I'm going to go to the nurse."

"Aw, you're fine, Bella. You never do anything fun, but just this once! I'll never ask you again if you'll just come out now.

There were only eight minutes left of recess and already most of the children were completely soaked. Bella needed to get out of the room before any of those children tromped in, splashing water every where.

"No, Martin!" She yelled, yanking her arm back, causing him to fall backwards. He didn't fall over exactly, but he hit a desk and yelped.

"Gee Bella, what's wrong with you?" He asked, rubbing his back side.

"I told you. I don't feel good and I want to see the nurse." She muttered.

"Well fine. I guess I'll see you later." Martin looked at her one last time before running out the door and into a really large puddle. She watched him splash around with a couple other boys for a little while before she started to go down the hall. If she had stayed any longer though, she would have noticed that he wasn't as excited about it as he had been, nor was he enjoying himself like the other boys were. But she didn't see that. All she saw was the nurses door. Opening it, she walked forward to the desk of the sweet older woman in the white dress.

"Hello there, Isabella." The woman cooed using Bella's full name. Nurse Beverly was the only woman to do that and Bella didn't mind it when she did.

"I don't feel good." Bella mumbled. However, she was feeling sicker than she had before her fight with Martin, so she didn't think she was lying.

"Oh well, let me take a look at you." Nurse Beverly stood up and walked around her desk to feel the little girls head. "Oh lands sake, you feel a little warm."

One of the great things about Nurse Beverly was she always let you be sick, even if you weren't at all. She came up with symptoms for every child, regardless of their consistency and let them sleep in her office for a class period or so. Bella came to Nurse Beverly more than any other student at school, so she and Bev had a special bond. Bella even toyed with the idea once of telling Nurse Bev that she was a mermaid, but fear won out and she decided not to have a confidant.

"Alright, tell me where you hurt." Bev asked the girl, and she pointed to her stomach, head, throat and chest.

"Oh dear, this is serious, this is serious. Why don't you just lay down now and rest." Bella did so, and was quiet while Bev wandered around the office. Soon, the pattering of the rain on the rood stopped and Bella knew she would be sent back to class soon if she didn't do something. People didn't just magically dry off once the rain stopped pouring, and she didn't want to be in the middle of them for any length of time.

"Can you call my mother? I'm feeling really…" Bella cut herself off with a cough.

"Oh yes, of course dear. Just a second." Bev walked over to the phone calmly, but a commotion outside, distracted her.

"Nurse Beverly, could we get some help here? Lucinda twisted her ankle!" A voice called from outside the room. A girl yelped in pain and someone consoled her. Soon, a dripping wet Lucinda limped in with the aid of a teacher and went for the bed that Bella was lying on.

"I have to go to the bathroom!" Bella shrieked, unsure how to get around wet Lucinda without getting herself wet. However, Lucinda left her no choice. She tripped and caught herself on Bella's shoulder, the water from her hands seeping into the fabric of her white shirt and onto her skin. Then Bella bolted.

She ran down the hallway and into the bathroom, locking herself in the handicapped stall before sitting down and transforming. She sent up a quick prayer that the only handicapped girl in the school, May Fairfax, wouldn't have to suddenly go potty.

While she was sitting in there on the floor, trying to dry off with toilet paper, Nurse Bev came in.

"Excuse me sweet pea, but I called your mother and she's coming to pick you up. Are you feeling all right?" She said into the bathroom. Bella didn't know how to respond.

"Umm… yeah. I just… threw up." Bella gasped, feeling very guilty about lying to the nice lady.

"Oh dear! Do you need me to come in there with you?" She asked sweetly.

"Oh, um, no. I'll come out in a minute." Bella responded with panic.

"Alright dear." And with that, Nurse Bev walked out of the girls bathroom.


End file.
